Hunting the Hunter
by Tamuril2
Summary: Slightly AU. What if Maria hadn't let Jasper go that easily? What if she had come for him? A short story about Billy and Jasper and how they became friends. There aren't any J/B friendship stories, so here's the first! No slash.


**Disclaimer: **I do not own, or make any profit, off of this story. This is only for my own enjoyment and hopefully yours as well. All Twilight characters belong to Stephenie Meyer (I hope I got her name right), I'm just borrowing thme for a short time.

**1st A/N: **When I first became a memeber on here I promised myself I'd never write a Twilight fic. I only ever got to the third book, though my best friend has gotten me to see all the movies (which are neat!). Ha, shows how little I know, doesn't it? It was thanks to all you Twilight writers on here that this story was written. I hope I did all right on this. Please tell me how I did.

**2nd A/N: **To any of my LOTR fans who read this, I'm not giving up on my Erestor stories. I've just really hit some snags and decided, instead of fighting it, to just take a short(ish) break. Hopefully my muse will come back soon and I can start posting a new Erestor story.

**3rd: **I want to thank ThirteenXSeventeenXNineteen for betaing this for me. Thanks for all your petience and advice! on this. :D Also, a big thanks to Kaiilia for letting me use her picture.

**Warnings: **Violence, though it's not that bad (at least to me).

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><p>"<em>You can't undo anything you've already done, but you can face up to it. You can tell the truth. You can seek forgiveness. And then let God do the rest." <em>** Unknown**

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><p>If three weeks prior, someone had told Billy Blackwater that he would feel sympathy for a vampire, the elder chieftain of the Quileute tribe would have…would have…well, he wasn't sure what he would have done, but it certainly wouldn't have included agreeing with them. In fact, he most likely would have glared at them and told them that he would never feel anything other than hatred and disgust for the Cold Ones.<p>

They were blood thirsty killers, both in the literal and figurative sense. They were the walking dead. They were evil incarnate, unredeemable demons. Yet, as Billy sat chilled to the bone in the silver laced cage, watching the on goings of the vampires all around him, he couldn't help but feel sympathy. Not for all the vampires roaming about, no they _**were**_ pure evil, he just felt it for one vampire in particular…Jasper Whitlock Hale Cullen (How did one man get that many last names?).

How this all started, Billy wasn't quite sure. He had, of course, heard of Jasper Whitlock's strange disappearance through his son, Jacob, and Seth Clearwater. However, even then he hadn't worried about it. To him it only meant that there was once less vampire to worry about. In fact, Billy hadn't become involved until the night of his capture.

The actual kidnapping had been taken care of rather quickly; abducting a paralyzed man wasn't that hard. They had only waited until he was alone, bound and gagged him, and taken him away – Oh, if he'd been a few years younger. After a few days of running nonstop, the vampires had deposited him in front of – if Billy was being honest with himself – one of the most stunning females' he'd ever seen, excluding his wife. That's when the nightmare started.

The Mexican looking woman was called Maria. She was Jasper's creator, thus a vampire – that took her charm away at once. From what Billy could gather from her long monolog, she was gathering her coven together, building it up so to speak, and she wanted her second in command, Jasper.

Problem?

He wanted nothing to do with her, ever. Maria was not pleased, to say the least, and she wasn't taking "no" for an answer. Which was why he was here, she had informed him.

That had surprised Billy to no end. It was no secret that the Quileute tribe and the Olympic coven were only just allies. Billy had told her as much. Maria had only laughed that sinful little laugh of hers. Billy closed his eyes as the memory flashed before his eyes.

**(Begin Flashback)**

"_Me?" Billy said at last. "I believe you have the wrong person. My kind and vampires do not mix well."_

_Maria laughed. The lean young looking man next to her shivered ever so slightly, though his eyes never left the ground. Billy recognized him then. Jasper Whitlock._

_But why isn't he trying to escape? Was the thought that raced through Billy's mind._

_Maria also noticed the slight movement at her side. She turned towards Jasper, walking so that she was just behind him. The long, slender fingers of her right hand started to run seductively through his honey coloured hair. Jasper stiffened. _

_Maria smiled at Billy before grabbing a handful of Jasper's hair and yanking his head up. No emotion played on the young man's pale face, though Billy was sure the grip on his hair was painful. It was then that Billy noticed the silver chains on Jasper's wrists and ankles. Silver. The only metal that vampires could not break; the only thing that could weaken them besides starvation._

"_Oh, I know you don't mix well with the Cullen's coven," Maria said, her red eyes hard. "That's why I brought you."_

_Billy quirked an eyebrow at the bizarre statement, "Indeed?"_

"_Yes…you see, I know of the tentative alliance your tribe and the Olympic coven now share. I wish to break it. Once I get rid of the Olympic coven, Jasper will have no other ties except to me. Those peace loving vegans are traitors to their own kind. They are nothing compared to my newborn vampires, but with those mongrels of yours helping them, they just might stand a chance of winning."_

_Billy couldn't help the surge of pride that that statement brought to him. To know that even the vampires knew how little they could stand up against the shape-changers….it was satisfying._

"_This is why you're here, human."_

"_You wish to break the alliance," Billy said with sudden inspiration. _

_A flash of surprise graced Maria's face before she smirked, "I guess you're not as stupid as you look, human." _

_Billy settled for a snort instead of an answer, exuding a calm he knew he didn't feel. Truth be told, he was terrified of being this close to so many vampires, but he wasn't about to let them know that. When it was obvious that he wasn't going to answer her verbally, Maria continued._

"_As you've already surmised, I'm going to use you to break the alliance that now stands with between the shape-changers and the Cullen coven. You will be the key. After I've sufficiently retrained Major Whitlock here, I will order him to kill you. Your body will be disposed of near your home. This will make sure your wolves find it and the scent on it, Jasper's scent. Thus ending the alliance and ensuring my victory." _

_Jasper hissed at the last declaration, his eyes finally showing some spark of life. "Ya'll leave mah family alone!"_

_His defiant statement was rewarded with Maria's left hand clasping his neck in a choke hold. Her face was chilling to look at as she leaned in towards Jasper. _

"_Who said you could speak, Major?" She said, her Spanish accent thick with venom. He gave a weak struggle before she put a stop to it by tightening her grip on his throat. A ripple of laughter went through the watching newborns. _

_This is sick! Billy thought to himself. Jasper stilled under the strangle hold, his neck cracking like mortar where her nails dung in. It must have been painful, yet nothing, no emotion whatsoever, passed across Jasper's face. Billy was a little impressed. _

"_Good boy, Jasper," Maria said, her voiced condescending. Jasper's only answer was a withering glare. Maria chuckled at it. She let go of his throat and waved two vampires over. "Please escort the human to his cage."_

_Billy stiffened at the words. Cage? What cage? Billy glanced around. Oh, that cage…Not too far away from where they were standing – or in Billy's paralyzed state, sitting – stood an iron cage. It looked large enough to sit up in or lie down, but in no way walk around, not that Billy would be doing much of that. He glared as the two strong newborns lifted him up and started to drag him towards the cage. _

_When they got to the cage Billy was thrown in. The door closed with a resounding __**BANG**__. Billy shook his head to clear it and glanced out between the sparkling bars. Wait! Sparkling? Iron bars didn't sparkle! Billy looked closer at the bars and surrounding iron. Silver coated every inch of it. Evidently, the newborns in Maria's army weren't as controlled with their blood lust as she would like and Maria wasn't taking any chances that someone other than Jasper would kill him. _

"_Clever," Billy admitted to himself. So that was why the vampires escorting him had worn gloves. _

**(End Flashback)**

And that little episode had only been the first of many. Maria did everything in her power to break Jasper. From ripping his limbs off to killing humans in front of him, Maria tried it all. And still Jasper resisted. Over the weeks even Billy couldn't stop himself from admiring and pitying the young vampire. Admiration, because no matter what Maria threw at him – be it pain, humiliation, or blood – Jasper would not capitulate. Pity, because Billy honestly felt, at least now he did, that Jasper did not deserve this. In those several weeks, Billy had tried to stay aloof yet despite himself, he had gotten to know the southerner.

**(Start Flashback)**

_Listening to tonight's torments hadn't been easy. Though the full moon had been out, it was still night and Billy didn't have the vampiric eyesight to see that far, for which he was very grateful for. He didn't want to see the atrocities being committed. This was one of the first times Billy could remember hearing Jasper actually cry out. Maybe Jasper was reaching his threshold, maybe Maria was angrier than usual, Billy didn't know. _

_All he knew was that for the first time since he'd been brought here Jasper was crying out, and none to softly either. In fact, crying out might be an understatement, screaming might be more apropos. He was begging Maria to stop. That was another first for Jasper as well. Jasper never begged, no matter what Maria did._

_Of course, this new development might have something to do with tonight's "entertainment". _

_Children. _

_When they had first been brought to the camp Billy hadn't believed his eyes. Maria and the others brought in humans occasionally, mostly to torment Jasper, sometimes for themselves, but they were always adults. Still, watching as those small bodies were ushered in front of Maria, seeing as they quivered in fear before her, just made everything seem all the more wrong. Maria, of course, had smiled her malicious smile and told her minions to tie them all up. Jasper, from over in his corner, had been wearing the most anguished expression Billy had yet seen on his face. That was when the first twinge of sympathy had ignited in Billy. _

_What must it be like to feel all this hatred, all this unadulterated fear, and know that the only way to stop it is to turn yourself into one of these monsters, Billy had mused to himself as he'd watched Jasper. Instantly the young man's head had come up and glanced towards him, almost as if he knew that Billy was thinking about him. _

_Of course, Billy had realized with a start, he didn't have to know what Billy was thinking, because he knew what he was feeling. Jasper was an empath after all. Billy had cursed quietly. What was he, going soft? Sympathizing with a Cold One? Billy had cursed again. He wouldn't let these feelings grow! He was a Quileute, he couldn't feel that way for a Cold One….could he? _

_Billy blinked as tilted his head. The screaming, from both Jasper and the children, had stopped. Billy was both relieved and saddened by this fact. Relieved because it meant that the night's torments were at an end, but saddened because it also meant that those children were dead. Another round of innocent souls killed. The clearing that they were in was getting lighter. Morning had come. _

_How ironic, Billy thought, the day only comes after the night's dark doings are done._

_Part of Billy, the Quileute part, felt that all of this truly was Jasper's fault. He should be stronger than this. He should be able to put a stop to this. He…he should just admit that he was a monster and join this Maria's coven. Yet even as these dark thoughts floated around in his head, another part of him knew they weren't true. It wasn't Jasper's fault that this evil was being committed; it was Maria and her coven's fault, not his. He couldn't stop this anymore than Billy could. _

_In a way, Billy was glad that Jasper had succeeded in holding out for this long. Billy didn't want to admit it, not even to himself, but he was vaguely pleased that Jasper was not capitulating to Maria's plans. That he was proving to Billy that vampires could be more than what he'd learned as a child. _

_Billy started as something was thrown against his cage. Silver chains were then looped around a few of the bars and fastened there. _

_**Jasper**__! _

"_Have fun," an anonymous vampire sneered as he walked away. Most of the coven left the campsite soon after, which meant that they were most likely hunting again. Wonderful thought that._

_Billy glanced down at the form that now sat against his cage. It was the first time that Jasper had been put so near the elder native. Most of the time Maria kept them apart, almost as if she feared they might concoct some escape plan together. Up close and in the growing light Billy could see Jasper's true condition. Most of his designer clothes were rags due to the rough treatments he was receiving. His hair was a matted mess of honey blond curls. Across his body lay multiple bit marks, which Billy knew from Isabella Swan's account were more painful than being burned. _

_All in all, the young Cullen boy looked terrible. His shoulders were shaking, as if he were keeping in sobs, or anger. Sympathy followed quickly by admiration filled Billy before he could think about it. Jasper stiffened and glanced up at him, shock in his black eyes._

"_Admiration?" Jasper whispered, "Yuh feelin' sympathy and admiration fuh meh?"_

_Billy battled with himself. Should he tell the Cullen boy why he felt those strange feelings, or just turn around and ignore him? _

"_Yes, I do," and the surprise that came with that verbal confirmation was clearly embedded in it. Jasper's eyes widened._

"_But…why?" _

"_I…I'm not sure truthfully….I think…the admiration comes from the fact you're not bending to Maria's will….the sympathy…it….it…no one should have to go through what you're going through," Billy admitted, his words halting._

_There was a long, awkward pause after this, both Jasper and Billy taking in and thinking about what had just been said. After a while, Jasper looked up again. His eyes really were black, Billy noticed. _

_He must be starving by now, Billy thought. How much longer can he hold out? How much longer until he breaks?_

"_Not….much."_

"_What?" Billy said in surprise._

"_Yuh was wonderin' sumthin….it weren't hard ta figure out..." _

"_How much longer until –?" Billy couldn't finish the question. Jasper looked down for a moment before he straightened. _

"_Ah'm not sure…but Ah think…not much longer," Jasper said. _

_Billy was taken back at the true sorrow in his voice and eyes when he said this. It almost made the vampire look human. The Quileute in him protested against such thoughts. _

_He was a Cold One! _

_Yes, but not like the others here. _

_He'd killed hundreds, if not thousands, of humans! _

_Yet, he'd broken away from that path when shown a different lifestyle and was even now trying not to go back. _

_He was a vampire!_

"_Yuh hate meh," Jasper's voice cut into his interior argument. _

"_No," Billy said. Jasper raised an eyebrow and gave him a look that clearly said he didn't believe that. _

"_Yuh do know that Ah can feel yuh feelin's, right?"_

"_Yes, but I don't hate you," Billy said, "At least, I don't think I do anymore. Not after watching all this." And Billy waved a hand around at the seemingly deserted campsite. Jasper didn't look as if he understood any of what Billy had said. Billy wasn't sure he did either. He sat back against the bars. He really was tired, and hungry. True, Maria fed him, but only just._

"_All my life I've been taught that vampires were evil, that they were unredeemable. They were blood thirsty monsters that needed to be watched constantly and eradicated if they attacked a human," Billy explained as he gazed at his hands. _

_They were hard, calloused hands. They were hands that had worked the land when he was younger; hands that had been taught the quickest way to kill a vampire. They were hands that had taught other hands how to kill Cold Ones. _

"_Yet, "Billy said, "I feel conflicted." _

"_Yuh do?"_

_Billy gave the Cullen boy a look that seemed to say 'You're an empath? What do you think?' He made sure to feel these thoughts. Jasper's pale lips seemed to twitch up at that feeling. _

"_Yes, I am. I've been taught to hate your kind and I've taught other to feel this too. I still feel it, yet at the same time I don't…at least not for you and your family."_

_Jasper was silent, as if he knew that Billy needed to get this out._

"_I feel as if I should hate you. I hate the others here, yet not you. I've been taught to never feel anything but contempt, mistrust, and hatred for your kind. I don't truly hate you now, but….." Billy couldn't continue. _

_How could he explain to this vampire what he was truly felt? Without a doubt, Jasper could sense that Billy was conflicted, but he didn't – couldn't – know the thoughts behind those feelings. How could Billy explain that he felt as if he were betraying his ancestors by sympathizing with a vampire? _

"_But yuh feel as if yer betrayin' your people by feelin' this?" Jasper said for him. _

_Surprised, Billy could only nod at first, "Yes. I…I don't know what to do."_

"_What do yuh mean?"_

"_I want to let myself feel these things. I want to trust you, yet at the same time I don't know if I can let go of my hatred and…" Billy took a deep breath. His pride wouldn't let him finish his sentence. _

"_And?" Jasper prompted._

_Billy just shook his head, "Nothing."_

…_.And admit I was wrong, he thought as he closed his eyes, not yet ready to admit this out loud. _

**(End Flashback)**

Most of the coven along with Maria had left to hunt again. It shocked Billy how little self-control the newborns had over their thirst. He supposed his surprise came from being around the likes of the Cullen family for so long. He'd become so used to their peaceful ways that when he saw the vampires true nature revealed, its brutality stunned him. Billy glanced down.

Once again, Jasper was shackled to his cage. Billy had come to the conclusion that this was no mere whim. Maria was hoping that he would condemn the southern vampire, thus weakening the young man's resolve even more. Billy gave a mental sigh. It had almost worked.

"It wasn't your fault," Billy said. Jasper snapped his head up to him, his now red eyes glaring.

"Yes it were, and yuh know it!"

"It wasn't your fault," Billy said, more firm. He'd had a few days to think about what had happened and this was the conclusion he'd made.

"Then yuh ain't rememberin' correctly," Jasper said in return. Billy gave him an incredulous look, making sure he felt it as well. He couldn't forget what had happened those few nights ago. It was burned into his memory.

**(Flashback)**

_Tonight's events had been the shortest Billy could remember. It worried him. Maria wasn't one to let her victims go that quick. She liked to savor things. Billy was sure she took delight in their fear and begging. When Jasper was deposited by his cage Maria came along as well. That action alone sounded off alarms in Billy's head. Maria had never come before. Something must have happened._

"_Comfortable, human?" she said. "I've brought your friend over."_

"_We're not friends," Billy retorted. At least not yet, he added to himself. _

"_Ah, but you are close, no?"_

_Billy decided not to answer that one. Maria laughed at his silence._

"_Well, I'll just leave you two then," she turned to the others, "Come, it is time to hunt!"_

_And then they were gone. Silence reigned until Billy could take it no more. "What happened?"_

_Jasper gave no reply and, in spite of himself, Billy became worried. _

"_It couldn't be that bad," Billy prompted, though knowing Maria it had been. At his words Jasper snapped his gaze up at him. Billy gasped. His eyes! His eyes were red! He'd fed on a human! _

_Immediately the Quileute in him reared its head. _

_I was right all along, he is a monster! I should've known better than to trust him! I let him deceive me! How could I have been so stupid as to believe him? A Cold One will never change! It's in their nature to murder! _

"_Yuh see?" Jasper's voice cut through his inner accusations, "It is that bad." Billy glared at the vampire._

"_You drank from a human!" he accused, remembering the poor girl who had been brought to the camp earlier in the day. _

"_Yes."_

"_She was just a child and you murdered her!"_

"_Yes."_

"_You're nothing but a monster!"_

"_Yes," Jasper whispered. He drew his knees to his chest, head bowed. If possible, that made Billy even angrier. How dare this creature pity himself! He'd killed an innocent! He had no right to pity! _

"_Why?" Billy asked, his rage barely contained. "What happened?"_

_Jasper didn't answer._

"_What happened?" Billy demanded._

"_At first nothing," Jasper began, "But then they cut her wrists and arms….her legs…and there were blood everywhere…Ah smelled her blood…Ah could feel their hunger….Ah could feel mah hunger….Ah cain't explain it…It was like their hunger became mine….Ah couldn'a take it no more….Ah had ta feed….Ah….Ah killed her…"_

_Billy didn't say anything. He couldn't. Not now, with the girl's face still fresh in his mind. _

**(End Flashback)**

"I remember correctly," Billy said.

"Then yuh wouldn't be sayin' that!" Jasper snapped back.

In an instant, Billy was filled with an intense rage unlike any other. He didn't know what had brought it on; maybe it was Jasper's tone, maybe it had been slowly building, but all of a sudden, it didn't matter why. Without thinking, his hands closed into fists. His muscles tightened. The vampire was right! He was forgetting that this monster had killed an innocent young girl. He deserved no pity! He should be killed! Burned! Made to feel what that poor girl felt!

Billy blinked at that last thought, reason seeping in. Jasper had to have felt that girl's feelings. He was an empath. All at once Billy's irrational rage made sense to him. Jasper was manipulating his feelings, trying to make him angry.

"Stop manipulating my feelings," he said. "I know what I feel and I won't have you changing it."

Jasper blinked at him. And then, just as suddenly as it had come, the rage departed Billy, leaving him with a hollow, yet accepting feeling.

It hadn't been Jasper's fault. Not entirely. Yes, he'd killed the girl. Yes, he'd drunk blood from her. But then Jasper hadn't really been thinking when he had done that. He'd been starving to the point that it had driven rational thought away. Alone, with just his own feelings of hunger, Billy was certain that Jasper might have been able to resist the temptation of fresh blood.

However, combined with twenty other vampires' feelings of hunger, Jasper hadn't had a chance. What was he'd said before? That it was almost as if their feelings had become his? Almost like being hypnotized, Billy mused. In his weakened state Jasper hadn't been able to separate his feelings from the others and, as such, his desire for blood had increased tenfold.

"You couldn't have stopped yourself," Billy said. Jasper's red eyes glared into his black ones.

"Ah should've," Jasper snapped, more at himself than anyone else Billy realized, "Ah should've been able ta stop…Ah should've…should've been stronger!"

"While feeling not only your own hunger, but twenty other individuals as well?"

Jasper said nothing.

"No one is perfect. Everyone falls down at one time or another. What matters, is if you give up or keep on trying. What matters, is if you let Maria win."

Silence answered Billy's speech. Jasper wasn't even looking at him anymore. Instead, his gaze was intent on a bush some meters away. Billy wondered if he had even listened to a word he'd said.

"Seth is here."

"What?" Billy spluttered, too surprised to say anything else. Had Jasper finally lost his mind?

"Ah've become attuned ta his feelings. He's close by with Leah and Jacob; mah family as well."

"What about Sam and the others?"

"Ah can't sense them."

"Can you feel Maria and the others?" Billy asked as the troubling thought came to him. Jasper nodded his head.

"Yes."

**OoOoOoOo **

"_Well?"_ Jacob Black's thoughts punched into Edward's mind. Edward gave a glare in the werewolf's direction.

"Well?" Emmitt asked not two seconds later. Edward glared at him too. Emmitt knew better! Edward resisted the urge to growl at both of them. Did they think it was that easy to sort out all the different minds and thought patterns? And at twelve miles away no less! Carlisle laid a calming hand in his shoulder.

"Patience Emmitt," Carlisle said. A few minutes later Edward nodded at Carlisle and the others gathered around.

"Maria and her coven are returning, just as Alice saw. They were going to hunt, but then they smelt our scent," Edward said in a murmur.

About three days ago Alice had, after weeks of trying, been able to pinpoint both Jasper and Billy's location. They had forgone telling Sam, as everyone knew Sam was not as restrained or compliant as Jacob, if only by a hair's inch. They had convinced Jacob that they wouldn't need Sam's pack because Maria's army wasn't that large. She had sent most of her more seasoned soldiers back to Mexico. All they'd have to deal with was twenty new borns and one seasoned warrior, plus Maria.

"Is Jasper there?"

"_Is my father there?" _

"Both Jasper and Billy are there."

"We should attack now," Carlisle said, "Maria and her coven have not yet arrived, so we could set up a defensive perimeter. They have also not eaten, so they will not be as rational."

"_Agreed,"_ Jacob communicated to Edward, _"Seth and I will take the south end. Leah will stay with you."_

"_What? I am not going with the bloodsucker!" _Leah yelled, making Edward wince in pain. Leah's mental voice was just as loud and scathing as her human one. Esme glanced at him in worry, but Edward gave her a small smile of reassurance.

"_I am pack leader and I say you will go with the Cullen's."_

There was a moment of silence before, _"Fine!"_

"Jacob agrees," Edward told Carlisle, "He says that he and Seth will take the south end, while Leah will stay with us."

Carlisle nodded, "Very well. But I would like it if Alice went with you Jacob."

Jacob's wolf head gave what could be approximated as a nod. _"Very well."_

"He agrees," Edward said. In short order the two groups were spreading out to their separate locations. Edward was walking next to Carlisle when suddenly he stopped. A concentrated look fell on his pastel face.

"What is it son?" Carlisle asked, laying a hand on the younger vampire's shoulder. Edward's head jerked towards him.

"Alice just had another vision. Maria and the others have sped up. They will arrive at the camp at almost the same time as the rest of us. Alice wants to know what you want to do."

Carlisle joined in his family's dismayed looks. "Has she told Jacob and the others?"

"Yes."

"All right, we'll just have to speed our pace up and confront them head on. Tell Alice to have her group join us."

"Yes! Now we'll have some fun!" came Emmitt's enthusiastic response. Edward resisted the urge to glare again at Emmitt. Fighting new borns and possibly a few seasoned vampiric warriors was not his idea of fun. Instead of glaring though, Edward concentrated on Alice again.

"She knows now and has told the werewolves."

"Good. Let's go!"

They took off running through the forest, jumping over bushes and fallen trees with inhuman speed and agility. Soon the werewolves and Alice had joined them. Maria and her coven were just coming into sight as they neared the campsite.

"Remember what Jasper taught us," Carlisle said, calm, as they slowed down by the edge of the forest trees.

"Never attack them head on," Rosalie said, clenching her fists.

"And never go for the obvious kill," Esme put in.

"_They'll be expecting it," _Seth concluded, his eyes roaming the somewhat larger group of vampires.

"Good," Carlisle said as he stepped forward into the camp. The others followed a short distance behind him. Maria eyes widened at the sight of the three werewolves, but she recovered fast. She gave a confident smile as she stepped forward.

"My, my," she purred. "If I had known we were going to have visitors I would have gotten you something to eat."

"That's all right," Carlisle said, his anger at her only just suppressed in his voice. "We won't be long."

"Oh? You have more pressing matters?" Maria asked as she strode over to the cage where they could see Billy was being kept and Jasper had been chained. Jacob gave a loud growl, his eyes never leaving her petite form.

"Indeed. We came to get back our coven member, Jasper, and Billy Blackwater."

Maria's thin laugh tinkled through the grounds. She ran her perfect fingers through Jasper's hair. "Take him back? You think you can just come into my territory and demand one of my own?"

"He's not yours anymore," Alice said, her golden eyes hard. It was obvious that she was restraining her anger towards the other woman.

"I beg to differ, little girl," Maria said, her tone hardening. Everyone tensed as she turned towards the vampires near her. "Be dears and kill these intruders for me."

A simple order was all it took for the battle to begin. Blurred figures ran at the Cullen family and the werewolves. Two young men attacked Esme, coming in from opposite directions, but were taken care of by her at once. Five vampires attacked Seth, but between Edward and him they were outmatched. Three vampire new borns went down by Emmitt's power alone, while Leah took down four. Alice ran after one new born who attempted to escape into the woods.

The remaining five new borns tried to gang attack Rosalie, but Emmitt wouldn't even let most of them come close to harming her and the rest were taken care of by Rosalie herself. Jacob became the proud victor in the battle between the seasoned warrior, Matthew he had introduced himself as. The vampire had been too cocky in the beginning and underestimated Jacob. Still it was no mean feat. Jacob let out a howl of victory as he severed the vampire's head from his body.

"Enough!" a sharp shriek tore through the clearing. All eyes turned towards Maria. She held Jasper's head between her two hands, tense, ready to severe it from his body as Jacob had Matthew. No one in the clearing moved.

"One wrong move and I rip his head off! You stay exactly where you are!"

"Maria," Carlisle said, his hands held up placating before him as he stepped forward. Maria tightened her grip and wrenched Jasper's head back further. A small groan escaped Jasper's lips. He was far too weakened by the torture he'd endured and the silver chains to do anything else. Carlisle stopped at once.

"I said don't move," Maria said. "Don't think that I won't do it!"

Without warning, Maria was thrown back from Jasper and thrust to the ground, a pixie like hand clasped tightly against her throat. Maria blinked in surprise as she gazed up at her attacker. She struggled to get free, but found that her attacker's anger had lent her extra strength.

"No one," Alice hissed, "no one takes my mate and gets away with it."

The hand on Maria's throat tightened even further until Maria's neck began to crack. Fear raced through Maria's eyes.

"Alice," Carlisle spoke, his tone both worried and commanding at the same time. Alice turned angry eyes on him.

"I know," she said, her grip not loosening in the slightest, "I won't kill her."

Carlisle nodded to Emmitt and Jacob. "Take Maria from Alice please."

Both boys hurried to comply. Once Maria was taken from Alice she ran to Jasper. The other member of her family conveniently found other things to do. Crouching down she lay a gentle hand on his thin shoulder. Jasper flinched at her touch and Alice's heart broke at the reaction. She knew what feeding on that human girl had meant to him, what thoughts were permeating his mind – failure, weakness, treachery, villainy…demon.

She attempted to peer into his downturned face, mindless of the werewolves transforming behind a bush and reappearing clothed. Jasper only put his head down more. The cage door was opened and Billy was helped out. Alice placed a finger under Jasper's chin.

"Shh," she murmured lovingly, "It's all right Jasper, it's over now."

Alice finally managed to get his head up and she gazed into red eyes. Sorrow was deeply imbedded in them.

"Ah killed her," Jasper whispered, his tone broken.

"I know, love, I know, but it wasn't your fault. Maria made it so you couldn't control yourself. It's her fault, not yours."

Jasper gazed back into her eyes. Alice could see he wanted to believe it. An updraft of wind alerted them to Leah's coming. They had found an extra pair of silver chains and had finished putting them on Maria.

"Carlisle says we should get going. I'll get those chains off him now," the young woman announced as she bent down. Jasper glanced at her and suddenly the native girl was on her feet again, backing away with a gasp. Jacob hurried over to her.

"What's wrong?"

Surprise, worry, and finally anger settled on Leah's features. "He…he's drunk human blood! His eyes are red!"

Everyone in the clearing froze, their expressions differing. Jacob's and Leah's were angered. Edward's was apprehensive. Esme's, Rosalie's, and Emmitt's were shocked. Carlisle's was worried. Seth's was a mixture of shock and betrayal.

"Did you know about this?" Jacob asked in a strained voice, his eyes on Carlisle. The older vampire shook his head, his eyes still on Jasper, and then cleared his throat.

"No, I…none of us had any idea," he said, leaving out the fact that he was sure Alice had known. Both father and daughter would have long chat after this. Jacob grunted in reply.

"It doesn't matter!" Leah shrieked. "He's fed on a human! He's broken the treaty! We should kill him!"

With each condemning line Jasper seemed to shrink into himself more and more. At the last one the Cullen family rushed over to Jasper and bodily surrounded both him and Alice in protective circle. Jacob and Leah growled, while Seth looked as if he wished he had never come.

"You are not harming Jasper," Edward said for his family.

"He fed from a human. Leah's right, he's broken the treaty. He must be punished at the very least," Jacob said. Leah didn't look happy at the last statement, but she didn't contradict Jacob.

"Hasn't he been punished enough, man?" Emmitt demanded. He'd felt guilty the whole time Jasper had been gone and now that Jasper was with them again no one was going to hurt his brother while he was around. Maria watched the entire scene before her in amusement.

"No!" Leah snarled. Things might have ended badly if Billy hadn't interrupted.

"Enough," Billy said. "We don't have time for this. We don't know if Maria has more allies nearby. We should leave this place."

"But," Jacob countered in surprise.

"Now," Billy commanded.

Carlisle nodded in agreement. Someone would have to stand down first. He motioned to his family. They complied against their will. Jacob and the others followed a few seconds later.

"Jacob, get those chains off Jasper," Billy's tone left no room for argument. Jacob huffed under his breath, but did as his father asked.

"Don't think that I'll forgive you, vampire," Jacob avowed as he tore the chains off. Jasper said nothing. A chuckle turned every head to Maria.

"Well, that was quite a performance, though the ending was disappointing," she smirked.

"I wouldn't be so smug if I were you," Edward said.

"Oh? And why not? You have no power to hold me for long."

"True," Carlisle put in, "But I alerted the Volturi to what you were up to."

Maria's eyes widened.

"Believe it or not they've been wanting to see you for quite some time now, but for some reason you keep turning their invitations down," Edward finished.

"Look, I'm a powerful woman in Mexico. I can give you anything you want," Maria said, "Just let me go. I won't bother you or your coven again."

Carlisle gazed at her with cold eyes. "No."

**OoOoOoOo**

A few weeks had passed since Billy and Jasper had returned home. Maria had been taken by agents of the Volturi a day after their homecoming. Jasper was glad to see her go. Not much changed between the Quileute tribe and the Cullen family, though Billy had somehow convinced the shape changers not to kill him. His family was still being over protective of him, which was why Jasper was hiding in his room talking to Seth via Skype.

"Oh, and Billy says hi," Seth mentioned suddenly. Jasper blinked.

"He does?"

"Yeah. And he told me to tell you he still doesn't think it's your fault and to stop…what did he say…oh yeah, to stop moping like some zombie."

Jasper chuckled. "He did, did he?"

"Yeah, though I'm not sure he really knows what a zombie is," Seth grinned. "You know, he's pretty impressed by you, not that he says it all that much, but I can tell."

Jasper smiled.

"_Seth?" _a voice called from somewhere off screen.

"Yikes, that's Leah. Got to go, man. Talk to you later?"

"Sure."

The screen went blank. Jasper gazed at it a bit longer. Zombie huh? He rolled off the bed.

"Emmitt?" he yelled down the stairs.

"Yeah?" the slightly worried reply came up.

"Bet I can beat your butt at Warcraft!"

"In your dreams, dude!"

_**The End**_

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><p><em><strong>Please, hit that review button and tell me how I did. All comments, constructive critism, and advice are welcome. <strong>_


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